Letters: ‘King’ Brownback, voter fraud, GOP perceptions, city code enforcement

King Brownback

OK, so I am clearing some space in the garage, emptying boxes with material long saved for dubious reasons. I encounter the Declaration of Independence published by The Star heaven knows when.

I peruse it a bit and realize the bulk of the document lists the grievances our declarers had with the king of England. And I begin to wonder how we are doing with some of the new Kings we have created since that time.

For example, the declaration states, “he has refused to assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.” Does this hint of Kansas King Sam Brownback, who refuses to expand Medicaid or establish a state-run health insurance exchange for the Affordable Care Act or fund schools at appropriate levels?

Or, “he has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.” King Brownie came close to this by appointing a personal aide to the state Supreme Court and in trying to revamp the whole impartial appointment system.

We do not need a war to rectify this. An election will do.

A good start will be to replace the entire legislative body.

Ron Platt

Overland Park

Illegal immigration

With American ingenuity, a spacecraft was developed 9 1/2 years ago that flew several billions of miles to Pluto. Why can’t we use this same ingenuity to develop drones to patrol our borders, to detect illegal crossings and detect tunnels through heat-sensing devices?

Although our president does not have an ongoing relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israelis could be helpful to us in finding and destroying tunnels. Let’s elect representatives and leaders this time that have some good old-fashioned American ingenuity.

Steve Katz

Leawood

GOP, American dream

I am sick and tired of hearing and reading that the Republican Party is for rich white men only. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Today’s Republican Party is trying harder than ever to share the wealth through the real American dream. The Democrats have perverted the American dream with excessive entitlement programs, with a goal of expanding these programs until cradle-to-grave government dependency is complete.

The real American dream is financial independence. We believe in this country and its ideals of self-reliance and freedom.

All are welcome to share this dream our forefathers have created by sacrificing so much. Please remember the difference in ideals between these parties when you are in the voting booth.

Take the opportunity to enjoy the American dream through the GOP, which believes in you and this county's ideals.

Joe Lavender

Lenexa

Voter fraud probe

Recently, Wichita State University mathematician and statistician Beth Clarkson raised the issue that Kansas voting machines might not be accurately counting some votes in Sedgwick County (7-21, A5, “Voting machine audit thwarted”). Until now, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has been the “champion” of the GOP in trying to stamp out the “huge” voter fraud problem in Kansas.

However, Clarkson hasn’t received any help from Kobach’s state office to help clear up this perceived statistical anomaly. The reason Clarkson can’t seem to get Kris Kobach’s attention is clear.

She does want to stop voter fraud but she isn’t talking about Mexican voter fraud.

Joe Hodnik

Olathe

Honoring city codes

I sympathize with the neighbors in Overland Park who are having to put up with a disputed outdoor storage codes enforcement dispute by the son of a homeowner. Living in an area of Prairie Village starter homes, I have seen firsthand codes violations by new homeowners and renters.

A few violations are committed by older homeowners. Much of the problem is a lack of education about city codes. Many newcomers come into Johnson County from more rural areas, where there are no code restrictions.

Prairie Village has tried to publicize city codes, but it has had to hire a second codes enforcement officer and do a sweep of the entire city to eradicate blight that has crept into certain sections of the city.

In my view, compliance with the Prairie Village codes represents the minimum maintenance needed to keep blight out of the community. I am sorry the Overland Park situation has become so polarized that a lawyer is recommending legal ways to junk up the front yard until a court appearance in September.

Somehow this seems all wrong.

Nathalie Crew

Prairie Village

Bad deal with Iran

Almost weekly the people of Iran shout “Death to America.” Why would we (the U.S. government) want to make a deal with this country?

History has shown that Iran can not be trusted. The inspection process in a joke.

And now Iran will have more money to use in the cause to kill Americans. Obama wants this deal to be a part of his legacy.

He and the State Department have given in to almost all of Iran's demands. The legacy of this deal will be the destruction of Israel and an intercontinental ballistic missile (nuclear armed) hitting Washington, D.C., or one of our other cities.

Wayne Miller

Overland Park

This story was originally published August 4, 2015 at 2:20 PM with the headline "Letters: ‘King’ Brownback, voter fraud, GOP perceptions, city code enforcement."